When : October 8

Established : 8 October 1932

About :

• Also known as Bharatiya Vayu Sena,
• Was established as an auxiliary air force of the Royal Air Force of Britain, that was removed by The Indian Air Force Act 1932
• First squadron of the Indian Air Force (IAF) – ‘No. 1 Squadron’ ( Commissioned – 1933)
• In March 1945, acknowledging the IAF’s achievements and contributions in the Second World War, the service was honoured by the bestowal of the title ‘Royal’ on its title by British monarch King George VI. On becoming a republic in 1950, the prefix ‘Royal’ was dropped.
• Apart from the National Defence Academy, other training institutes for air force personnel include the Air Force Academy, Dundigul; the Pilot Training Establishment at Allahabad; the Institute of Aerospace Medicine at Bangalore; the Air Force Administrative College at Coimbatore; the Air Force Technical College, Bangalore; the Paratrooper’s Training School at Agra and the Tactics and Air Combat and Defence Establishment at Gwalior.
• The IAF inventory includes several aircrafts such as MiG series, Sukhoi Su-30, HAL Tejas, SEPECAT Jaguar, Boeing 707, Ilyushin series, helicopters like the indigenously developed HAL Dhruv, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for reconnaissance and surveillance, and missiles.